


but i'm flying like a bird to you now

by pitchblackkoi



Category: The Bastards Crew
Genre: Canon-Typical Violence, Love Confessions, Other, as they are wont to do, lise saves wren from doing something dumb
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-06-11
Updated: 2019-06-11
Packaged: 2020-04-24 10:41:01
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,160
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19171618
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/pitchblackkoi/pseuds/pitchblackkoi
Summary: Lise has spent a very long time telling themself that they can never love again. Wren has put something of a spanner to that plan, though. This is how it comes to a head.





	but i'm flying like a bird to you now

Lise is in the midst of a heated fight. It’s something they’re very used to at this point. The adrenaline and sweat that come with being in the midst of a fight is  _ thrilling _ ; a bright point in a very long existence filled mostly with waiting for the next big thing. Not fun, no, but exciting. Something to do that they are good at. 

Of course, this means that they are also hyperaware of their surroundings. It is pure instinct that places where the biggest threats are, where the easiest and most effective escape routes are, and where their crewmates are. The last is usually the least of their worries. Lise has been travelling with other immortals for centuries now, meaning that even if they couldn’t take care of themselves it didn’t matter. 

Well, it didn’t matter for several reasons really. The other big one is that, as a rule, Lise does not care about other people. They had their heart ripped out and set aflame millennia ago, at the same time they lost their legs. They cannot die, so they simply travel the stars looking for ways to pass the time. Sometimes that involves other people and sometimes those people become something akin to friends, but Lise does not let them into their heart. For the longest time they thought it was because they simply did not have one anymore, but recently they were proven wrong.

When Wren entered Lise’s life they seemed like a starry-eyed youngster; newly immortal with hope still in the universe. They were from the City, which Lise is extremely familiar with, and had thought that vigilantism was the answer. That mistake had almost killed them, probably would have if not for the shiny metal spine they were gifted with along with the key to eternity. 

Initially, the whole thing they had going on was just  _ grating _ . It was probably the centuries spent depending on only themself, but the idea Wren had that they could make a difference, the scrappy little thing, was annoying as well as being stupidly filled with a hope that they shouldn’t  _ have  _ anymore. It all lead to decades of petty arguing until Lise realized what it really was that grated their nerves. It reminded them of themself, a young thing filled with love and hope for a better world. Right before Luz was killed. So they decided to give the poor thing a break.

That in itself was, perhaps, a misstep because less arguing meant more actual conversations.  _ That  _ meant that Lise actually got to know Wren, to see the differences between who they once were and who Wren is. Wren is scrappy and full of energy and believes in direct action. They like to jump around on roofs, even though they are pretty bad at it, and usually go for hand to hand combat, even though they are  _ really  _ bad at it. Wren is kind of a disaster, but in a way that Lise finds stupidly charming.

Which leads them here, in the middle of a firefight, acutely aware of exactly where Wren is and that they are against a foe that will surely kill them. That is an unacceptable outcome, so Lise analyzes their situation and makes their way over to where Wren is, leaving carnage in their wake. They are going to smell awfully of a combination of blood, sweat, and laserfire when this is over, but that doesn’t matter as long as they make it to their destination. 

Standing behind Wren’s assailant, Lise makes a quick series of observations that leads them to holster their gun and draw their dagger, wicked sharp and glinting gold, jamming it into the man’s throat just as he is about to wrap his hands around Wren’s throat. Blood sprays into Lise’s face as the man chokes on his own blood and falls to the ground. 

Wren looks absolutely shocked by this turn of events as they make eye contact with Lise. They growl low in their throat and whip their head around to make eye contact with Fara. The pair lock eyes and have a silent conversation, courtesy of having known each other for so long. She nods her assent and Lise whips back around, gripping Wren by the wrist and dragging them bodily off of the battlefield and into a nearby building, their other hand using their gun to clear their passage.

Shutting the door behind them, Lise whirls around to face Wren, absolute fury on their face. “What were you  _ thinking _ ?”

“What was  _ I  _ thinking?” Wren scoffs, looking surprised and angry in equal measures. “I could ask you the same question, dragging me away in the middle of a fight.”

“No, they can handle themselves,” they say, waving off Wren’s concerns. “You, however, have consistently proven that if left alone you will pick a fight that will get you killed  _ again _ . You know how to use a gun, Wren, and always pick a fight with the biggest, meanest bastard in any given city with just your bare fucking  _ hands _ .”

“What do you care?” they shout back. “I mean, gods, I thought that we were finally friends and suddenly we are both back to arguing constantly all over again. And now here you are, worried about me dying when you know that I’ll just come back!  _ Why do you care so much? _ ”

“Because I’m in love with you!” Lise screams. “I promised myself that I wouldn’t do this again and here I am, centuries later, falling in love with someone  _ again  _ and they have a  _ death wish _ .”

Wren stares at them, opening and closing their mouth, absolutely stunned. For their part, Lise’s chest is heaving and there are angry tears streaming down their face. 

“You, you love me?” they ask softly.

Lise looks to the side and wipes their face, tears mixing with the blood on their face and hands. They don’t notice. “Yes.”

“Oh.” There is no overstating the shock on Wren’s face as they try to piece together what’s going on through the adrenaline that is slowly draining from their body. “I think I love you, too?”

Lise laughs bitterly. “You don’t have to make me feel better just because I had a breakdown over it. I’ll be fine.”

“No, I mean it,” they insist. “Before we started arguing all the time, I think I started falling for you. Even while we were arguing.” They sound like they’re piecing it together as they’re speaking. “Yeah, even then. I love you.”

“Oh.” It’s Lise’s turn to look surprised. They never thought they would get here. 

Wren steps forward and looks up into Lise’s face, streaked with blood and soot as it is. “Can I kiss you?”

Lise doesn’t answer, just takes Wren’s face in their hands and kisses them soundly on the mouth. It isn’t the best kiss, they both taste like dirt and sweat, but it gets across the feeling of new hope and love just fine.


End file.
